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Cong retains 6 sitting MPs
Hundreds of supporters throng Sajjan Kumar’s residence in New Delhi on Sunday to congratulate him on getting ticket from
South Delhi. Tribune photo: Manas Ranjan Bhui
Constituency
Profile: East Delhi |
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Artscape
On World Water Day, students
rediscover Yamuna’s beauty
Congress steps into campaigning shoes
A participant of the "The Delhi Heritage Drive, 'Badhte Kadam'- Rally for the Girl Child" at the Red Fort in New Delhi on Sunday.
Tribune photo: Manas Ranjan Bhui
Inderjit kicks off poll campaign
Schools to teach HR studies
Cash, jewellery looted
Man found dead in Ashok Hotel
Couple commit suicide
3 killed in car-mini truck crash
Man, sister-in-law crushed by dumper
Items worth lakhs robbed from colonel’s house
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Cong retains 6 sitting MPs
Sources said that there was talk in the party circle that a few new faces would be included in the list of candidates in Delhi. But the AICC has to retain all the sitting MPs, as it could not offer to make any change due to the Commonwealth Games in 2010. The Congress has announced that union urban development minister Ajay Maken will be its candidate from prestigious seat of New Delhi from where he is a sitting MP. He will have to face BJP candidate Vijay Goel, former union minister. In the last elections, New Delhi was called a constituency of government officials and employees but after delimitation, a major part of South Delhi and erstwhile Karol Bagh constituency had been added to it. The newly added areas are mostly Punjabi-dominated which have always been vote bank of the saffron party. Another union minister Kapil Sibal will contest from Chandni Chowk that was earlier considered the smallest parliamentary constituency. But now it has been spread till Pitampura. Sibbal’s nearest rival is BJP leader Vijender Gupta who is contesting Parliament election for the first time. Sandeep Dikshit has also been retained in his constituency of East Delhi that earlier covered entire trans-Yamuna, but now half of the area is left after delimitation. However, the assembly constituency of Okhla has been included in East Delhi. He has to face Chetan Chauhan who has been declared the BJP candidate. Chetan is a first-timer while Sandeep is the second-time MP from the same constituency. Congress stalwart Jagdish Tytler who is sitting from erstwhile Sadar parliamentary constituency has been accommodated in newly created North-East seat. Sadar has been abolished by the delimitation report. His rival BJP candidate is a septuagenarian, B. L. Sharma (Prem). BSP contestant Haji Dilshad is also one of the candidates from North-East. He may damage the Congress vote bank in Muslim areas. Another Congress stalwart Sajjan Kumar has been given ticket from South Delhi. He is also a sitting MP from erstwhile Outer Delhi. He has to fight BJP candidate Ramesh Bidhuri who is an MLA from Tughlakabad. Another sitting MP Krishna Tirath has been asked to contest from newly created North-West constituency. It is a reserved constituency. She was MP from Karol Bagh. West Delhi man soon The Congress would soon declare the candidate for West Delhi. Three names–R. K. Anand, two MLAs Mukesh Sharma and Mahabal Mishra—are there in the panel. These names have been selected by the screening committee. Now the party high command will decide the name of the candidate. In the last election, the Congress won six seats except South Delhi where V. K. Malhotra was victorious defeating Manmohan Singh.
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Constituency
Profile: East Delhi Sandeep Yadav Tribune News Service
New Delhi, March 22 The present East Delhi constituency has ten assembly segments consisting of Jangpura, Okhla, Trilokpuri, Kondli, Patparganj, Laxmi Nagar, Vishwas Nagar, Krishna Nagar, Gandhi Nagar and Shahdara. While the constituency has retained 79 per cent of earlier area, about 21 per cent of the area has been added to newly formed North East constituency including Seemapuri, Gokulpuri, Rohtas Nagar, Mustafabad, Burari, Babarpur, Karawali, etc. However, the constituency has been compensated by adding new areas which were earlier part of three different constituencies. About 7.8 per cent area from New Delhi parliamentary constituency has been added to East Delhi and includes parts like Jangpura, Daryaganj and Minto Road. Similarly, about 6.9 per cent area from Outer Delhi constituency has been added here. Sarita Vihar, Badarpur, Madanpur, Khadar are now part of East Delhi. South Delhi constituency made a contribution of 6.67 per cent to this seat and areas like Okhla, Zakir Nagar form parts of East Delhi now. Post-delimitation, Muslims with 16 per cent strength of the total electorate have emerged as the single largest chunk of votes followed by 15 per cent scheduled castes/tribes. About 14 per cent Punjabis, 12 per cent OBCs, 13 per cent Brahmins, 7 per cent Gujjars and 3 per cent Sikhs formed the other substantial chunk of 15,45,193 total votes in this constituency. With Muslims and Brahmins traditionally being Congress voters in the Capital followed by OBC backing, things should be once again tough for the BJP here. The area also has huge population living in JJ cluster and mostly comprises SCs and STs who voted for the Congress in the assembly elections. If the trend continues, Sandeep may increase his margin of victory. In the 2004 general elections, Sandeep Dikshit defeated his nearest BJP rival by more than 2.29 lakh votes and if one dismisses the figures saying that it was five years ago and things have changed after the composition of the constituency post-delimitation, consider this: of the ten assembly seats falling in East Delhi parliamentary constituency, the ratio between Congress and BJP is 8:2 in favour of Congress in the recently concluded assembly elections. Only Trilokpuri (SC-Reserved) and Krishna Nagar assembly constituencies proved lucky for BJP while the rest were bagged by Congress. Even the overall votes polled in these ten assembly constituencies put Congress 1.06 lakh votes ahead of
BJP.
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Festival marks 50 years in exile of Tibetans
Ravi Bhatia Tribune News Service
New Delhi, March 22 The festival will include exhibitions with live demonstrations, talks, seminar, film screenings, performances, discourses and of course the exquisite Tibetan cuisine focusing on the lives of Tibetans in exile toiling to rebuild and preserve the fabric of their community away from their homeland. Vocal recital
On March 24, the India International Centre here is presenting an evening of Hindustani vocal recital by Malini Awasthi, a disciple of Shujat Hussain Khan, Ustad Rahat Ali Khan and Girija Devi at its auditorium. Textile exhibition
On the occasion of the 225th birth anniversary of Alexander Csoma de Kõrös, the great Hungarian scholar, the Hungarian Information and Cultural Centre is holding a Hungarian cultural festival with a unique textile exhibition, Gates of Csoma, by illustrious Hungarian textile artist, Anna Kubinyi from March 17 to April 9 The exhibition was inaugurated by O.P. Jain, president, Sanskriti Foundation and adviser, INTACH, in the presence of Dr Géza Pálmai, Ambassador of the Republic of Hungary. Darbar-e-Sham
Bhajans and melodies of Indian legends singer Rini Mukherjee and flute maestro Pandit Rajendra Prasanna will regale the audiences at the India Habitat Centre here on March 23 in a musical evening “Darbar-e-Sham” organised by Le-Rythme, an organisation for promoting indian music and dance. The other performers in this event will be Ustad Rashid Mustafa in tabla and Tanveer & Imran Ahmed Khan (vocal) classical from the Delhi gharana. The programme will be accompanied by Athar Hussain Khan and Intezar Ahmed on tabla, Ratan Prasanna on guitar, Murad Ali on keyboard and Javed Hussain on sarangi, Khalid Mustafa on sitar, Rishav Prasanna on flute, Wazid Hussain on octopad and Biswajit Chatterjee on harmonium. The South Passage
An eclectic exhibition of paintings “South Passage” by noted Dubai-based artist Nasr Warour is being held at the Galerie Romain Rolland Alliance Francaise from April 9 to 11. In the ‘South Passage’ the artist invokes the representational powers of art. Here, the artists’ expression represents a much overlooked point of contact between the corpus and the cosmic, the object and the environment, the being and the belonging. The visual information in each expression of ‘The South Passage’ is dense yet simple in form. The narrative is intimate yet vivid in its description. Nasr’s interests comprise art, sculpture and literature. His rendezvous with the arts, in fact, started with sculpture. This artist also writes poetry in Arabic and often weaves it into his paintings. This exhibition attempts to celebrate the unbound free spirit, unfettered and liberated. Through Nasr’s works, we are drawn into a world that celebrates life in all its varied nuances. It is about the merging of the human spirit and the ‘one’. Nasr Warour was born in 1968, in Syria. With a background in bachelor of fine arts from Damascus University, he has been exhibiting extensively across the globe and is the recipient of several awards. Music from Nigeria
The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) here and the High Commission of the Federal Republic of Nigeria are jointly hosting an evening of traditional dance and music from Nigeria at the Sri Satya Sai International Centre on March 24. Students’ creations
FACE (Faith Academy Creative Eclat) art gallery is showcasing the creations of some of the talented students of the Faith Academy on March 27, 28, 30 and 31. The theme of the exhibition is based on nature. The works displayed are the creations of students aged between 10 years and 16 years. Tantrik paintings
The Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) here is presenting an exhibition of tantrik paintings by artist KA Francis from March 23 to 26. Francis, a Kerala-based artist, specialises in tantrik paintings and has exhibited his works both nationally and internationally. |
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On World Water Day, students
rediscover Yamuna’s beauty
New Delhi, March 22 Delhi Greens, a non-governmental initiative of youngsters working on environmental issues, organised an eco bus tour which took the participants to the Bhaleswa landfill and lake complex, the Yamuna biodiversity park, Wazirabad barrage and finally concluded at the Pontoon Bridge on the Yamuna near the Tibetan monastery in North Delhi. Vidya Subramanian, one of the organisers of the tour, said, “This tour was specifically for the (World) Water Day. Instead of complaining about the dirt, we wanted people to realise that there are still portions of the river which do not stink like the rest in the city and we have to protect it. Nearly 90 per cent of those who have come on the tour are students.” “We have been organising various urban eco bus tours which aim to bring the city’s people closer to the environment around them and make them conscious that they are responsible for conserving it,” said Subramanian. The clear blue waters of the Yamuna at the Wazirabad barrage and the humming of the birds on the banks at the Yamuna biodiversity park enthralled and actually surprised many, Subramanian added. “The barrage actually gave one the feeling of being in Rishikesh!” she said. “You know people are aware of the large scale destruction of the Yamuna. The stink of the river is actually unbearable in some parts and there are scores of petitions with regards to that pending in the court. “But our aim is to make the entire approach more participatory. By seeing the beautiful side of the river, and discussing about it with like-minded people, a hope is seen that all is lost,” she added. But ‘symbolic’ cleaning of the river is not what Subramanian has in mind. “Wearing gloves and boots and cleaning the river doesn’t de-pollute the river. That has to be a policy intervention approach and is definitely not a one-day thing. There has to be more awareness amongst people, especially the youth, and that’s what we are trying to do,” she said. One challenge the group faced while organising the tour was the weather. — IANS
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Congress steps into campaigning shoes
New Delhi, March 22 The Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) president Jai Prakash Agarwal has taken the onus of reviving the trust of the 26 assembly segments in Delhi where Congress couldn’t manage to sail through the anti-incumbency storm during the assembly polls. Kickstarting with Tughlaqabad, where Seeshpal of Congress was beaten by Ramesh Biduri in the Vidhan Sabha elections, the DPCC president has covered five areas, including Tuglaqabad, as of now. The other four are Burari of North-East Delhi parliamentary constituency, Shakurpur of Chandni Chowk, Rohini and Rithala of North-West Delhi parliamentary seat respectively. The DPCC president said that the Congress has allocated funds for various developmental works, including construction of roads and community parks, sewerage system, drinking water, electricity etc. “The development works had begun to change the profile of these colonies, and now progress and improvement is clearly visible. The Congress had fulfilled all the promises made by it to the people, and the regularisation of the unauthorised colonies had benefited nearly 40 lakh people,” claimed Agarwal. Meanwhile, the saffron party is trying its best to pacify its discordant subjects, but the village panchayats, which are dominated by Jats—supporters of late BJP leader Saheb Singh Verma, have declared that in the coming elections they would vote for the Congress. |
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Women in vintage cars back girl child
New Delhi, March 22 The proceeds from the ‘Badhte Kadam - Rally for the Girl Child’ will help educate 20 girls from Chaman, a non-profit group that works for underprivileged kids. The rally was also a tribute to that period in history when women took to the wheels, symbolising freedom and equality in a male-dominated society. The heritage line-up of cars and two-wheelers, which assembled outside the Red Fort in the morning, flaunted timeless specimens of automotive history like a 1947 Buick that once ferried the father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi, a 1919 Wolseley, a variety of Ford sedans and saloons from the 1940s and 1950s, Mercedes automobiles from the 1930s to the 1950s and several classic Chevrolets. For driver Sharon Sethi and navigator Shivani Tandon, driving a vintage automobile was a new experience. “This is the first time I am driving a vintage car, it is very different, I got a feel of it yesterday at a test drive,” said Sethi, an employee of the Standard Chartered Bank. Subhra Banerjee, who was at the wheel of a red 1937 Mercedes Roadster, was a little worried. “This is a very delicate vehicle. I am trying to reach the footboard of the car with the help of a cushion,” said the diminutive Banerjee. The history of women behind the wheels is woven with the feminist movement at the turn of the last century and the fight for women’s suffrage in US. In India, Muslim “begums” and Hindu princesses of the late 19th and the early 20th century were the first women to take to the wheel. The Begum of Bhopal was rumoured to have fled her estate in a 1930s Pontiac convertible when her estate was annexed to independent India. She abandoned her car at an airstrip. — IANS
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Inderjit kicks off poll campaign
Nuh/Gurgaon, March 22 Addressing a series of public meetings in
Nuh, Shikrawa, Shakras, Jalalpur and several other villages of the Mewat area, Rao Inderjit said though the Congress high command was yet to take decision on party’s Lok Sabha candidates, he had been asked by the central leadership to begin canvassing. He assured the people of Mewat that on returning to power, he would ensure the provision of basic amenities in the area and find a solution to the common difficulties faced by them. The minister exhorted the youth of the area to shun their negative mindset and channel their energies in a positive direction. He pointed out that owing to the able leadership and sound economic policies provided to the country by the Manmohan Singh government, India was relatively safe from the brunt of global meltdown. “It is common knowledge that while the advanced western nations like the UK and the USA have been hit hard by the slump, our economy is doing reasonably well,” he
maintained. Rao Inderjit appealed to the people of Mewat to vote in favour of the Congress in the ensuing elections so that the ongoing developmental activities could continue. Meanwhile, addressing mediapersons at Gurgaon today, INLD leader and former Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala’s son Abhey Chautala said that his father would kick off the INLD’s poll campaign tomorrow. |
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Schools to teach HR studies
New Delhi, March 22 The government took serious note of the deteriorating human rights situation of children and the human resources development (HRD) ministry admitted that it has become important to introduce human rights education in schools, colleges and universities. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has already prepared a blueprint of the syllabus for the ‘Human rights and gender studies’ subject. It will be introduced as an optional subject from next year in the Class XI and XII course. The syllabus for the course is already ready and the subject is expected to help build awareness among children on violence, identity, rights, use of language, culture and religion. The CBSE wants to impart human rights knowledge through case studies like the Gandhian perspective. |
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Cash, jewellery looted
Greater Noida, March 22 The bandits have looted jewellery worth Rs 3 lakh and Rs 1 lakh in cash. Half a dozen people have been detained for interrogation. A number of traders gheraoed the police station in protest. Kailash Solanki, the furniture trader has his show room on Kakore-Bulandshahr Road and he lives at the back of the show room with his family. Solanki had gone to Bulandshahr with family on Friday when the thieves struck. They entered the house after scaling the boundary wall. The robbers beat up trader’s son Rinku when he resisted them. They made him a captive and looted the house for about two hours, decamping with cash and jewellery. Some neighbours freed Rinku after he raised the alarm. The police and family were informed. Kakore police team visited the site with a dog squad and fingerprint specialists. Later, traders and shopkeepers gheraoed Kakore police station in protest. Police CO assured the traders that the accused would be nabbed soon. |
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Man found dead in Ashok Hotel
New Delhi, March 22 Ahemedabad-based S. Maharaj Mohan, who was working with a surgical instruments company Meditech, came to attend a seminar at the hotel in South Delhi. “One of his colleagues found his body at around 8.30 am in his hotel room. He was declared dead when taken to the doctor,” a policeman said. The reason for his death is still unknown. “He was a smoker and a diabetic. As of now, the most apparent cause for his death seems to be a heart failure, since there are no injury marks on his body. However, investigations are on,” the officer added.
— IANS |
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Couple commit suicide
New Delhi, March 22 According to the police, the incident was reported to Mukherjee Nagar police station in North Delhi this morning by neighbours of Amit Singh. By the time the police reached the spot, the neighbours had doused the fire. The police rushed the victims to a nearby hospital where Amit was declared brought dead while Mamta was in a critical condition. |
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3 killed in car-mini truck crash
Greater Noida, March 22 The accident occurred around 4 pm on Sunday near the Bhadoli village on the expressway. The mini-truck, in which a lot of people were traveling, was hit from behind by a speeding car. The driver of the mini-truck lost control over the vehicle and it overturned into a ditch, the police said. Three women - identified as Chandra, 60, Kusum, 30, and Subri, 30 - traveling in the mini-truck were killed in the accident and 19 other people were injured. The injured were rushed to hospitals in Greater Noida. The driver of the car was also in a critical condition, the police said.
— IANS |
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Man, sister-in-law crushed by dumper
Greater Noida, March 22 According to police circle officer Rakesh Kumar Singh, the deceased, Satish, and his brother’s wife Savita, were going to Jaganpur from Echhar. When their bike reached Gole Chakkar, a dumper hit it from behind. Both the victims were dragged to some distance by the dumper. Officials of the Echhar police post rushed the injured to Kailash Hospital, but Satish succumbed to his injuries during treatment. Savita is stated to be in a critical condition. The police, on a written complaint by Satish’s family, has registered a case against the unknown dumper. |
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Items worth lakhs robbed from colonel’s house
Noida, March 22 Bhatt had gone to his relatives in Gurgaon for Holi on March 8. He returned on Friday and that was when he discovered about the robbery. The thieves had broken the house lock and then entered through a window. They took away cash, gold and silver jewellery and other valuables. The police has inspected the house and has lifted fingerprints. It is interrogating all domestic helps and small-time hawkers who visit the sector. The police said it seems that the robbers did their job very leisurely, as they possibly knew that the family was not in town.
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There are no new faces in the list of Congress candidates for six out of seven Parliament seats in Delhi announced last night while one has been left for the reasons better known to the party high command.
New Delhi, March 22
